Each period has its
own history. Each period has its own heroes. In 1999, the famous Indonesianist
Benedict Anderson wrote that what Indonesian people called "reformasi"
in 1998 had actually occurred in early 1900. Since that period, there have been
many heroes who raise the national awakening. Thus, what is happening today is similar
to what happened in the past.

Ben Anderson
said that Indonesia had given birth to many heroes. They are Dr. Sutomo,
Natsir, Tan Malaka, Kartini, Haji Misbach, Pramoedya Ananta Tur, Yap Thiam Hin,
Sudirman, Roem, Sukarno, Hatta, Armijn Pane, Sudisman, Haji Dahlan, Hasjim
Asj'ari, and more. In his article, he asked a question: who is the hero in
contemporary Indonesia? Which person is
worthadmiring in
modern Indonesia?

He asked
this question to many Indonesian students in Cornell at that time. He wanted to
compare about present and future figures in Indonesian history. Most of the
students didn’t know how to respond to this question. Anderson hoped that
they will mentioned one from the
many names that are mentioned above. But he was
questioning when the students mentioned Iwan Fals
as their hero. He said: "Is not this rather
terrifying?" [1]

I assume
that not everyone understands about the contribution of Iwan Fals to
social change in Indonesia. Maybe he did not understand that through his songs,
Iwan Fals always talks about the sad social reality of Indonesia. Anderson’s view
reflect the opinion of many people who think popular music is not important.

As noted by
Lockard (1998), there is always a connection between popular music and the political
situation in Southeast Asia. Lockard believes that a singer has a function as a political
actor, especially in the way these performers use music as a social weapon or
tool – and even sometimes as a call to change, challenge or overthrow the
existing government or socioeconomic condition that they consider as unjust
systems.

In this
context, Iwan honestly speaks about poverty, prostitution, government
corruption, rising prices, and also public representatives who always sleep at the parliamentary hearing. He
also played an important role to kindle the spirit of reform of Indonesian students
during the reformasi period.[2]

I still
remember that in 1997, when I was a freshmen student at Hasanuddin University
at Makassar. At that time, Indonesia and other Southeast Asia countrieswere hit by the
monetary crisis. Everywhere, prices
soared. In all major cities,
protests continued, requesting President Soeharto to step down from the
presidency.

Almost every
day, I always lead Hasanuddin University students to demonstrate.
Unfortunately, there were not many students interested to join our demonstration.
Most of them just watched us marchng in the streets. At that time, the New Order
regime was still powerful. Many activists were kidnapped and killed by the
military. One day, me and other student activists had an initiative to invite
the living legend of Indonesian music, Iwan Fals to
play.

In 1997,
Iwan Fals came to Hasanuddin University. He came as a member of Kantata Takwa band
with the poet W.S Rendra, the
musician Sawung Jabo, and the businessman Setiawan Djody. They sang critical song
about the
government. The students hoped that Iwan would sing Bongkar and Bento,
two powerful songs that we always sang in our demonstrations.

Then, Iwan sang
Bongkar (demolish) and Bento.The
songs ignited the spirit of thousands of Makassar
students. After that time,
most university students joined us in every demonstration. Hundreds of students
went to Jakarta and joined with thousands of other students to demonstrate in
front of the House of Representatives. Iwan
Fals and his band traveled to many areas and sang his critical songs. Finally,
our effort paid off. On May 21th,
1998, Soeharto resigned as President of the Republic of Indonesia.

For me, Iwan
Fals is a contemporary hero who inspires many people to be critical of the
authority. Iwan Fals has always been the voice of Indonesia's grassroots
movement since the New Order era, but until now, he has preferred not to be its
formal leader. He just keeps doing what he does best - singing and cheering -
and maintaining the qualities of his song and conviction that keeps his fans
loyal to him.

In 2002,
Time magazine named Iwan Fals as the Asian Hero.[3] In
this edition, there were only two Indonesians in the list. They were Iwan Fals and
novelist Pramoedya Ananta Toer. Their profiles were put together with the
profiles of other Asian leaders such as the famous Hong Kong actor Jackie Chan,
the Burmese pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, the Tibetian monk, Karmapa
Lama, and the East Timorese leader, Xanana Gusmao. Interestingly, Iwan Fals picture
became the Time magazine's
cover. In the article entitled "Iwan Fals Sings a Timeless Message of
Justice for All", Time noted:

Here's why Iwan Fals matters:
because boy bands don't take on dictatorships. They don't stand up when
everyone else is hunkering down. They don't put to song what others are afraid
to put in print. Pop stars should give a damn—when they do, remarkable
transformations are possible.

Time also
noted that Iwan Fals concert is the most widely attended concert in Indonesia.
Time noted: "He's the voice of the people. And he has been a thorn in
the side of those who would abuse power."

Another prominent magazine focusing on music,
politics and lifestyle, Rolling Stone, also wrote a comprehensive report about Iwan
Fals. This magazine made ​​a list of 150 best songs in the history of
Indonesian music. Iwan Fals’ song “Bongkar” became the best song on the list.
Two other songs such as Guru Oemar Bakri and Bento were also in the top ten. According
to Rolling Stone, Iwan was a musician who inspired many people with the power
of his lyrics.

Iwan Fals,
nevertheless, is not alone in the ranks of musicians that voice critical songs in the
history of Indonesian music. In the late 1940s, some nationalists controlled
several radio stations during the Indonesian revolution and employed that
advantage to spread their message. They adapted keroncong as a weapon,
with many ‘lagu perjuangan’ (struggle songs) written in this kind of
genre and broadcasted them on revolutionaries-controlled radio stations.
Hence keroncong came to represent not just lower-class but also nationalist
aspirations. Even today most of these songs are performed in the keroncong style.
The nationalist songs are known as keroncong revolusi (revolutionary
keroncong) and deal with issues of freedom and independence. One of the
best-known songs was “keroncong merdeka”

During
the 1950s and early 1960s, Indonesia was led by the charismatic President
Soekarno, the founding father of Indonesian independence. In this period,
Brigadier General Rudi Pirngadie, a veteran of the revolution sometimes called
“General Kroncong”, attempted to create an updated (and somewhat westernized)
version that could serve as ‘a concrete symbol of nationalist ideology.’
Sukarno supported Pirngadie’s attempt to create a national music for
international distribution.

During
the tumultuous Sukarno era, however, keroncong gradually declined in
popularity, seen by many as overly mellow (even insipid) and –ironically, given
its origins – bourgeois. In this era, a new form of proletarian theater called
ludruk became widely popular in some cities in Java; the closely related art
form, lodrok also developed in Madura. The styles were considered crude
compared to the elite wayang. Mixing music, comedy, and satire, the ludruk
performance generally depicted problems and issues of modern society, including
social criticism and problems of slum dwellers.

Under the New
Order, control of the arts and media by the government was mixed and inconsistent,
but generally Indonedia enjoyed a thriving and vibrant artistic scene
–including music. Between the mid-1960s and 1990s, Indonesia developed a wide
variety of popular music styles, some of which proved conducive and supportive to
socio-political comments and critiques.
Popular music became a major component of the background for daily life
(Lockhard 1998; 78).

In 1978, a
singer, Mogi Darusman[4] appeared
with his song Rayap-Rayap (termites) and Koruptor (corruptor). After that, in the early of 1980s, Iwan Fals came
with his song, Oemar Bakri, a story about the fate of a teacher whose salary is
not rising. Then, Bimbo became popular with a song that talked about social reality. Bimbo’s
famous song was Hitam Kelam (Black), which tells about the life of
prostitutes in Jakarta. After that, Bimbo launched Tante Soen[5].
This song told a story about the government official wives in Jakarta.

There was also
Ebiet G. Ade who saw the disaster caused by man's sin. Besides these artists, there was also
Doel Soembang with his song Mimpi Siang Bolong(daydreaming).
This song told about a farmer who was ruled by a wealthy king. The king had
unlimited money that was stored in many banks. Other names that followed the
same direction in this period were Harry Rusli (1951 - 2004), Franki Sahilatua
(1953 - 2011), Leo Kristi, and Rhoma Irama.

Why should Iwan Fals be
an icon of Indonesian protest music? In this article, I propose some
arguments.

First, Iwan
Fals is one of the most prolific musicians in Indonesia. A senior musician from
Surabaya, Gombloh (1948 - 1988), which is also known to be very critical of the government,
only produced six albums during his whole music career.

Another productive
musician, Franky Sahilatua, produced around 30 albums. Some of them actually
were composed with the help of Iwan Fals. Iwan Fals himself produced about 45 albums. Until
now, he remains productive to deliver musical albums that are made in
accordance with the spirit of his time.

Second, Iwan
Fals has many fanatic fans
who spread his ideas across Indonesia and the world. The fans
come from different social backgrounds, ranging from the upper class, the
middle class, up to the 'grassroots'. Many of them see Iwan Fals like a God (dewa). They
display Iwan Fals’ poster picture everywhere. The imagery of Iwan Fals is also
illustrated in their t-shirts. Also, many of his fans made a tattoo of Iwan Fals
as a symbol of loyalty.

Iwan also
has a charisma that makes nearly everyone willing to attend his show. This is
the power that is not owned by other singers and musicians. It is not
surprising then to hear that Iwan Fals’ concert became the biggest concert with
the largest
audience in Indonesia.[6]

In addition,
Iwan Fals is the only singer who forms a massive organization for all fans
called Orang Indonesia (OI). Indeed, other singers also form fans club. But,
Iwan Fals’ fans organization is different compared to others. Iwan
manages the organization with the goal to empower its members economically and develop
a sense of community. This explains why, on August 2, 1999, he invited
thousands of its members to come to his home in Leuwinanggung, Bogor, to talk
about this organization.

A huge number of fans that have various backgrounds came to
his house. They agreed to make the people of Indonesia (OI) into a mass
organization. They planned a national gathering which was attended by thousands
of fans. They formed the organization in all cities throughout Indonesia with
an estimated number of members up to 500,000 people.

However,
this number is not totally true. According to a study by a student of the
University of Indonesia in 2002, Iwan has 46 million fans. In comparison,
Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (SBY) garnered slightly over 60 million votes in the 2004
elections to become the country's first democratically elected president, while
the incumbent Megawati Sukarnoputri at that time collected only slightly over
40 million votes in the runoff election.[7]

Third, Iwan
Fals songs could explain many socio-political contexts of the New Order.
The songs recorded the events in the New Order period and also described human
interactions that existed at that time. Prostitutes, the jobless, thugs,
underpaid teachers, newspaper vendors, the homeless and thieves, all of them have
their own special place in Iwan's lyrics.

Some
attribute his close relations with the marginalized people to his experience as
a street singer in Jakarta and Bandung from the age of 13. Even after producing
four albums from 1979 to 1987, including Sarjana
Mudaand Sugali,
Iwan often still performed on the streets, especially in the Blok M area, South
Jakarta.

Fourth, Iwan
Fals is one of the few musicians who have a strong network with pro-democracy
activists. On the eve of reformasi, Iwan Fals joined with the Kantata Takwa,
a progressive network of the regime’s challengers, along with the critical poet WS Rendra.
According to the noted journalist, Andreas Harsono, in the 1990s, Iwan often
came to Salatiga to meet the prominent sociologist, Arief
Budiman. He learned how to understand political issues from Arief Budiman. He also
read a book,Catatan
Seorang Demonstran (Notes of A Demonstrator), that was written by Soe Hok Gie, the younger
brother of Arief Budiman.

Iwan also often
held discussions at his home in Leuwinanggung, Bogor. He invited speakers such
as Budiman Sudjatmiko, Sri Bintang Pamungkas, Khofifah Indar Parawansa, Anang
Hermansyah, Franz Magnis Suseno, and the former Minister of Youth and Sports,
Adhyaksa Dault. The discussion topics were varied, such as religion, love,
politics, piracy, violence against women, AIDS disease, the fuel price hike,
corruption, strikes, labor issues, until the national debt. Through this discussion,
Iwan tried to get inspiration. He also built a network with these critical
figures in order to learn from them.

Fifth, Iwan
Fals’s influence is not only felt in Indonesia but also in other countries.
Mandal (2003) noted that Iwan Fals influencedmany Malaysian artists in their anti-establishment
criticisms. One of them is the famous Malaysian cartoonist Zunar. Similar to
Iwan’s lyrics, Zunar creates political cartoons to criticize politics in Malaysia. Zunar has
also written about the collaboration of Iwan Fals with several artists as an effective
force to overthrow the regime. Zunar wonders in his conclusion, if artists in Malaysia
might be able to collaborate fruitfully to do the same thing.[8]

***

In addition
to the above mentioned arguments, I want to highlight two controversies
concerning Iwan Fals. First is his family background. This history is a very
interesting fact to be explored. Though his songs often promoted grassroots
phenomenon, Iwan actually came from a middle class family. His father was a soldier
with the rank of colonel. If Iwan comes from a military family, why would he make some
lyrics criticizing the military?

Second is
Iwan’s close connection with many businessmen. As part of the upper classes,
who made ​​friends with entrepreneurs, can we say that Iwan was a propaganda tool
of the entrepreneurs and the middle class to topple down Suharto? Given the circumstances,
can we explain the reformasi as an expression of the middle class who
actually wanted social change?

This article
aims to explore these two questions. I will start with analyzing
the family background and experience of Iwan as well as his elite connections,
especially in the period before the reform.

The Short Biography

His full name is Virgiawan Listianto. He was
born in Jakarta, September 3th, 1961 as the fifth of nine children. His
father's name is Harsoyo who came from Blitar, East Java. His father was a
soldier with the rank of colonel. His mother was Suudiyah Lies, originally from
Solo, Central Java. His mother is a woman of Arab descent.

Information
about Iwan's father is very limited. It seems that Iwan very rarely talks about
his father. He has a lot to discuss about his mother; he even created a song
about his mother. But he never wrote a song about his father. In one interview,
he said that he grew up in a military-style discipline. As a boy, he dreamed of
becoming a soldier. He failed to accomplish his dream later on because he was
far more interested in becoming a musician.

In an
interview with Tempo magazine, he says that in his childhood, he was very proud
as a soldier’s child. When one day he fought with the neighboring children, he
took his father's AK-47 to scare
the neighbors.[9]

At the age
of 11 years, Iwan moved to Bandung where two of his sisters lived. He attended school
in junior high school (SMP) 5 Bandung. Since he didn’t want to live with his sisters, he lived
alone in a dormitory.
Apparently, he wanted to be more independent. Maybe, he felt more freedom
without his family.

In several
interviews, he said that before passing his junior high school, his parents
moved him to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. His parents wanted him to be more focused in school.
He stayed there for more than eight months. Finally he returned home. On the
way home, he met a stewardess who taught him about Bob Dylan song called Blowing
in the Wind.

Returned
from Jeddah, he lived in
Jakarta. Soon after, he went to Yogyakarta, and after that he returned to
Bandung. He also went back to
school and spent time as a street musician. Then he moved to Jakarta. There
is no clear answer why he became a musician. He explained his choice in one of
his songs.[10]

Aku pergi

meninggalkan coreng hitam

di muka bapak

yang membuat malu

keluargaku

Kuingin kembali

Mungkinkah mereka mau
terima

rinduku

I run away

leaving a black stain

in my father’s face

that shames

my family

I want to go back

Could they be willing to accept

my longing for them?

With respect
to Iwan’s experience, there are two assumptions that can be mentioned here.
First, as noted by Shiraishi (1997), what was missing in New Order family is the
sense of belonging. Children, both young and old, were rarely found in their
houses during the day time when school is over. They freely moved around the
neighborhood alleys and the narrow spaces between houses.[11]

Second,
Iwan Fals grew up in a middle-class family who enjoyed many
facilities and luxuries in the New Order. But it seems that he choose to leave
the house, and then express himself through his music. In the New Order period, its rapid
development program successfully created a layer of middle-class. Later on, the
middle class became a group that was politically educated about their rights. This group held a critical awareness and understanding of the complex
social reality, which explains why they began to criticize the government.

In the early
period of his career, Iwan played country songs. The character of each of his songs
plus the lyrics made his style often associated with Bob Dylan’s. When he
launched his debut album Sarjana Muda, he gained an immediate popularity.
The media also began to refer to him as the creator of songs of social
critiques. Most of his successful early songs told stories about social
inequalities. Guru Oemar Bakri from his first album in 1981, recounts
the saga of a mathematics teacher who, even this technological age, still had
to ride an old bicycle, while his low wages consistently dropped every month.

…

Oemar Bakri (2x)

pegawai negeri

Oemar bakri (2x)

40 tahun mengabdi

jadi guru jujur berbakti

memang makan hati

Oemar Bakri (2x)

banyak ciptakan menteri

Oemar Bakri (2x)

professor, doctor,

insinyur pun jadi

tapi mengapa gaji guru

seperti dikebiri

…….

……..

Oemar Bakri (2x)

a civil servant

Oemar Bakri (2x)

40th served

as a teacher honestly serve

is eating liver

Oemar Bakri (2x)

create many ministers

Oemar Bakri (2x)

creates professors, doctors, and engineers

but why the wage of Oemar Bakri

seems to be corrupted

……

Gradually,
Iwan gained a large audience
with songs like Demokrasi Nasi (Rice Democracy) and Tahun 2000
(Year 2000), a warning that overpopulation might eventually sink Java into the
sea. He also wrote Mbak Tini (about the struggle of a truck driver laid
off by the government.). His song reflected sympathy for and criticisms against
the human cost of New Order’s socio-economic changes, such as underpaid
teachers, shoeshine boys, desperate prostitutes and unemployed university
graduates.

Iwan and family

The critical
lyrics of his songs soon attracted even more attention, incluiding a twelve-day
interrogation by local police in Riau Island in 1984, after he helped a student
fundraising effort. His notoriety as a potential oppositionist may have
deterred further serious media coverage.

Iwan’s songs
demand democratization and human rights, condemn corrupt power holders in
government and bussines, sympathize with the poor, criticize the hypocrisy of
the media and the blindness of parents. For example, his 1998 hit Puing
(ruins) conveys the following:

…

Nuklir seperti Dewa

Tampaknya sang jenderal
bangga

Dimimbar dia berkata

Untuk perdamaian

Mana mungkin

…….

……..

Nukes are like a god

The general looks proud

From the podium he says:

For peace, for peace…

What a Crap!

……

Iwan
particularly has achieved wide popularity among the urban youth , including both
from the kampungan(villages) and university circles. Everyday dozens of
youth visit the singer’s home, mimicking his fashion trademark of blue jeans,
long hair, and bandannas. Indeed, in 1990, a magazine was banned for a survey
that listed Iwan (and Soeharto) more popular than the Prophet Muhammad, who was
the eleventh and as a
result, devout Muslims were outraged.

In 1990,
Iwan formed a new group, Swami, which also included a prominent vocalist Sawung
Jabo. They made ​​a number of critical songs.
Among them are Bongkar and Bento. The song Bongkar was written
​​ when the Kedungombo village will be forcefully sunk by the government for a dam
construction project. In 1990, Swami’s concert with Rendra and his Bengkel Theater
group spectacularly attracted 120,000 to 200,000 to the Gelora Bung Karno
Stadium, marking it as the largest concert in the nation’s history.

The song Bento
was based on the fact that many entrepreneurs who built real estates and
bought villager’s land. Many mass media said that Bento was an
abbreviation of Benci Suharto (Hate Soeharto). Others said Benci Tommy
Suharto (Hate Tommy Soeharto).

Namaku Bento, rumah real estate

Mobilku banyak, harta melimpah

Orang memanggilku, bos eksekutif

Tokoh papan atas,

atas sgalanya, asik!

Wajahku ganteng, banyak simpanan

Sekali lirik, oh bisa
jalan

Bisnisku menjagal, jagal
apa saja

yang penting aku senang,
aku menang

Persetan orang susah,

karena aku

Yang penting asik,

sekali lagi, asik!

Obral soal moral, omong
keadilan, sarapan pagiku

Aksi tipu-tipu, lobi dan
upeti,

woo jagonya

Maling kelas teri,

bandit kelas coro, itu
kantong sampah

Siapa yang mau berguru,

datang padaku, sebut 3
kali namaku

Bento bento bento..

asik..

My name is Bento

My house is exclusive

My cars are many, money’s no
problem

People called me an executive
boss

A figure of first ranking, a cut
above the rest, that’s great

My face is handsome, my lovers
are many

I just give the girls a wink

and everything‘s OK

My business is to win deals,

whatever comes along

Damn the people if they suffer

because of me

So long as I feel great,

let me say again, that’s great

Summons of morality, talk of
justice

That’s my breakfast menu

Scheming, lobbying, and business
graft

I’m the champ

Petty thieves and small-time
hoods

They’re just rubbish to me

If you want to learn, just come
to me

Say my name three times,

Bento, Bento, Bento

That’s great

It’s
interesting to analyze that the personnel of Swami are from the middle-class
background. While Iwan is from a military family, Sawung Jabo is also from the
middle class background. Jabo graduated from one of the prominent
universities in Australia. He is also married to Suzan Piper, an Australian girl.

After dorming the Swami Band,
Iwan and Jabo Takwa joined with WS Rendra (1935 - 2009) and Setiawan Djody to
create Kantata Takwa. Each person has a unique background. Renda was born in
Solo, Central Java. He is a poet who is often dubbed as the ‘Peacock’. He founded
the Bengkel Theater in Yogyakarta in 1967. When a theater group in disarray
because of political pressure, then he founded the Bengkel Teater in Depok,
October 1985.

He was
active in writing short stories and essays in various magazines since he was
studied in the college. Rendra was a poet with an international reputation. He
also actively participated in festivals abroad, including the Rotterdam
International Poetry Festival (1971 and 1979), The International Poetry
Festival Valmiki, New Delhi (1985), Berliner Horizonte Festival, Berlin (1985),
The First New York Festival of the Arts (1988), Spoleto Festival, Melbourne,
Vagarth World Poetry Festival, Bhopal (1989), World Poetry Festival, Kuala
Lumpur (1992), and Tokyo Festival (1995).

Setiawan
Djody (born 13 March 1949; Solo, Central Java, Indonesia) is an Indonesian
businessman and guitarist. He was a Wharton School graduate in 1974 and got the
S-2 Philosophy from the University of California. He is the Chairman of Setdco
group in Indonesia. Setdco was being named after his own name. He is also a
musician, being listed by Rolling Stone as one of Asia's top guitarists. The
majority of its investments are in the areas of oil business, the media and
agro-industry; including telecommunications. He is listed in the 150 Richest
Indonesian by the Forbes magazine 2007. He is also active in the business of
shipping and has several shipping companies.

From this background, we can conclude that
Iwan Fals and his group were part of the middle class who saturate with the New
Order government. They joined with other middle-class alliance to overthrow the
Suharto regime. We can conclude that the reform movement is not a lower class
movement, but middle-class movement that wants to change an order.

Historical Context

Most of Iwan
Fals albums were released in 1980s. A total of 16 albums were released in this period,
the times when the New Order government chose the economic development as its
main objective. Policies determined by the military-dominated administrative
structure. With the support of many economic advisors who graduatde from
several universities in the United States (US), the New Order government
exploited a huge amount of natural resources in order to increase the economic
growth. However, growth was not evenly distributed in Indonesia.

Since 1966,
Indonesia entered the New Order. As the president, General Suharto has mixed
military and civilian leadership and allowed some limited opposition but kept
the mass “fluctuating” – or politically “neutral” and excluded the Marxists.
These policies created stability and mediated the emergence of an educated urban
middle class, but at the expense of some systematic repressions of all social
forces as well as the imposition of a highly manipulated political structure.

During 1980s,
a limited multiparty parliamentary system developed, but Golkar, a functional
coalition of groups allied to the military and bureaucracy, dominated somewhat
state-engineered elections and the whole country’s political agenda in what has
been called a ‘hegemonic party system.’ The electoral campaigns, routinely but alluringly
labeled ‘Festival of Democracy’, were ritualistic and orderly in its rhetoci,
with large numbers of security police. Behind the scenes, the military remains
the main arbiter of power.

The
authorities, concerned with limiting the potential for disorder, considerably
restricted the airing of opposing viewpoints and closely monitored the mass
media, most of them practiced self-censorship or came under formal or informal
government surveillances. The government at that time viewed the media largely
as an unofficial ‘bulletin’ or ‘conveyor belt’ for government information, and
most editors promoted close relationship with members of the ruling elite only
to retain their jobs.

Although the
New Order had great achievements in economy, the freedom of expression was not
guaranteed. The government relied on a strong centralization of power in the
hands of President Soeharto and his followers. Political freedom was suppressed
by physical violence, detention and bans of certain publications or actions
Political power of the New Order was an authoritarian bureaucratic character
that marked the dominance of the role of the State in all areas and the
suppression of political power.

[1] Ben Anderson wrote, “Over the
past dozen years I have been accustomed to asking Indonesian youngsters who
visit Cornell or come to study there this simple question: Who in Indonesia
today do you admire and look up to? The common response is, first, bewilderment
at the question, then a long scratching of the head, and finally a hesitant ...
Iwan Fals. Isn't this rather terrifying? I don't mean that everyone can or
should become a great man or woman. But I think that every man and woman can
decide not to be a dwarf.” See: Anderson, B. (1999) Indonesian Nationalism
Today and in The Future. In Indonesia, No 67 (Apr 1999), pp. 1 - 11. Cornell:
Southeast Asia Program Publications.

[2] See Lockhart (1998) Dance of
Life. Popular Music and Politics in Southeast Asia. Honolulu: University of
Hawai’i Press.

[4] Mogi Darusman's album was the
first and the last one. He was banned and not allowed to sing in Indonesia. See
Mulyadi, M. (2009). Industri Musik Indonesia: Sebuah Sejarah (Indonesia
Music Industry. A History). Bekasi: Koperasi Ilmu Sosial.

[5] The song "Tante Soen"
was banned by government in 1977. Because of this song, The Television of
Republic Indonesia banned Bimbo in the screen for several years.

[6] Indonesian Record Museum (MURI)
noted that Iwan Fals concert on June 23, 1990, at the Bung Karno Stadium, was
the most widely attended concert audience. Muri estimated that concert was
attended more than 150,000 people. This amount exceeds the capacity of the
stadium that only 90,000 people.